Zha Fuxi Preface to Kumuchan Qinpu

The monk Yunxian (1839-1913, self-styled "Withered Wood Chan Master", was a skilled qin player and creator of melodies. In the 19th year of the Guangxu reign (1893 CE), he published the Kumu Chan Qinpu in eight juan ("folios" or "fascicles"). The preface and colophons include contributions by nine writers, suggesting that at the time there was a flourishing community of qin experts.

In his self-preface (XXVIII/14), Yunxian writes that,

"Being enamored of the qin from youth..., I studied under Elder Mucun of the Bodhi Monastery (near Nantong in Jiangsu). I later received instruction from the Daoist master Zhao Yifeng, Confucian scholar Ding Suian of Wucheng (in Zhejiang), and Qiao Ziheng of Huaishan (Anhui), all of whom personally and painstakingly transmitted their knowledge to me. (Although) I did this for three decades I only really mastered a few pieces. Then, in more recent years, as my various teachers successively passed away and I was without guidance, I took to carrying my qin on extended travels in search of its Dao. I journeyed across Yan (around Beijing), Qi (Shandong), Chu (Hubei/Hunan), and Yue (Zhejiang/Jiangsu); wherever there was a skilled qin player, I sought him out and listened carefully, weighing each interpretation. I encountered many refined styles and excellent techniques. The underlying principles varied widely, even when the tonal structure was consistent; the distinction between the elegant and the vulgar was palpable....Our tradition's meditation cushions and clappers....attest to the similar virtues of the qin: how could they be different?...The elegance of qin play lies in the transmission of finger techniques. The subtlety of these techniques must be recorded in the tablature with precision and clarity. After long familiarity and practice, one can internalize the spirit and transmit the essence, attaining the emotional depth of ritual music (li yue). What I have heard and appreciated is partial at best and cannot exhaust the deepest meaning. Of the twenty-some pieces I have practiced, and the few I myself have created, I have examined their titles and dissected their meanings, eliminating the extraneous and complex. I have contemplated the subtleties of yin and nao (fast and slow vibrato), focusing on finger technique, all with the aim of achieving tonal harmony and rhythmic clarity. This tablature was stored away in bamboo book cases. For many years they remained there, as I did not dare to destroy these pear- and jujube-printing blocks. And now, as many friends urged me to preserve them, I have reluctantly agreed."

(Another) preface, by Hong Jun (XXVIII/3), quotes Yunxian’s own words, saying:

"I have studied the instrument for decades. Four masters guided me, and I later traveled and consulted qin players from the Jiangnan region, who would say, ‘This is the Zhejiang school, that is the Sichuan school, or the Yushan school, or the Jinling school.’ Others would speak of ‘the great house school,’ ‘the reclusive school,’ ‘the technical school,’ or even ‘the boudoir school.’" Upon careful reflection, he remarks: "It is hard to settle on a single evaluative standard." He adds, "As calligraphers discuss brushwork: the method lies in the model characters, but character lies in the calligrapher. In the same way, the Zhejiang and Sichuan schools embody method; the reclusive and other schools embody character. Among the thirty-some pieces I have practiced, most follow traditional models, with occasional modifications. I do not champion any particular school but simply seek to express my own nature. My goal is for the spirit to wander beyond form, and for intention to precede execution."

As for personal inter-connections, (Yunxian) was known for the depth of his friendships.

In his preface, Zhu Minwen (XXVIII/7) writes:

"Master Yunxian achieved renown through the qin. We were in contact when I lived at home, and after he established a hermitage at Tiger Hill, I took up an official post in Zhejiang. Nearly ten years passed without meeting. The Master visited all the famed mountains of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, dwelling in secluded valleys for long periods. In his hands, both Buddhist and Daoist teachings found musical realization. In 1887, he came to visit me in Wulin (Hangzhou). At the time, magistrate Zhu Anbo of Pucheng (morthern Fujian), Wang Mengda of Zhenze (near Suzhou), Wen Jichuan and Bai Yanxiang of Changbai (mountains in Jilin? Manchu?), and Xingxiang Hou (Marquis Xingxiang?) Yourong, all of whom were qin connoisseurs, expressed their wish to meet the Master. I asked if he might stay on the West Lake for a while, to which he simply replied, ‘Very well.’ Together with these gentlemen, we wandered the Six Bridges (at the south end of West Lake) and the Three Temples (on the west side of West Lake). Whenever the Master played, whether in morning mist or under the evening moon, a special charm arose. Thereafter, we would meet monthly, and each meeting would be filled with qin and song from dawn to dusk, deepening our spiritual communion. In 1888 I was summoned to the capital; the Master, unwilling to part, ‘played southern melodies in the northern style.’ After several months, music appreciation in the north proved silent and cold. Were it not for the Master’s commitment to purity and detachment, he might well have ended up like Ruan Ji smashing his qin in despair! Earlier, magistrate Zhu Anbo had deeply cherished the Master’s elegant playing and had planned to form a qin society at Jinniu Lake (is the lake of this name north of Nanjing too new?), but this came to nothing. In 1890, I left Zhejiang due to mourning obligations, and Zhu Anbo, Wen Jichuan, and Xianghou all passed away in turn. I cannot help but feel as though autumn rain has scattered the petals of a once-glorious tree."

Among the eminent qin monks of the time were Zhuchan of Sichuan, Kaiji of Anhui, and Langzhu of Mount Putuo (on an island at the mouth of Hangzhou Bay), all of whom had collegial or teacher-student ties with Yunxian.

The Sichuan monk Zhuchan (Bamboo Zen) wrote for him the inscription,

"Using the Qin to Expound the Dharma" (以琴說法),

and in his preface remarked:

"The Master deeply grasped the threefold mysteries of qin study. His conduct in the world expressed the ineffable transmission outside scripture. He also thoroughly explored qin tones and finger techniques with great subtlety. I once heard the monk Langzhu at Mount Putuo play the piece Meihua Sannong as taught by the Master."

In another preface, Kaiji records:

"After renouncing the world to study Buddhism, I encountered (the monk) Langzhu on the coast. One pluck, two — it formed a connection in the secular world." He goes on: "I have known the Master for thirty years. He unites qin and Chan (Buddhism) into a single path."

These prefaces are not merely formulaic endorsements. They give detailed accounts of Yunxian’s accomplishments, his friendships, and his Buddhist cultivation. Compared with the typical superficial colophons, they clearly represent a new style of writing. This qinpu is extremely concise in its discussion of qin theory and finger technique. As for the traditional repertoire, Yunxian does what he claims: "removes the superfluous and the complex," "harmonizes tone and aligns rhythm." In Beijing, his style was undervalued (simply) as Northern Style, while the refined connoisseur Zhu Anbo alone cherished his "elegant sounds." Most remarkable, however, is his boldness in composing new pieces and committing them to print — still a rare gesture in the tradition.

This edition is based on the Guangxu 19 (1893) print preserved in the Chinese National Academy of Arts and is reproduced here in facsimile.

Footnotes (Shorthand references are explained on a separate page)

1. QQJC preface to Kumuchan Qinpu
It was originally written by 查阜西 Zha Fuxi but later edited by 吳釗 Wu Zhao.
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2. Original text

一枯木禪琴
僧雲閒，自稱枯木禪，能琴，亦善作曲，於清光緒十九年（公元一八九三年）出刊《枯木禪琴譜》八卷。作序題詞者九人，透露當時彈琴名家很多。

自序說他「幼耽操縵，……就學於菩提院牧村長老。繼從羽士逸峰趙師、蕪城丁綏安夫子、淮山喬子衡夫子，蒙其悉心指授，研究義理，三十年來懂請數曲。比年諸師相繼殆謝，奉教無從，於是攜琴訪道，歷燕齊楚越，凡善琴者，必謁之，一一聆納，遞加審按，美善各遇，而妙理多殊，音節亦符，而雅俗互異」，「我教中之蒲團禪板，……證之琴德，奚有二哉？」「至於操縵之雅，在乎傳授指法。其指法之妙，又須譜注精詳，久久習熟，自可意會神傳，達乎禮樂之情矣。余誉聞其略，莫罄奥旨，惟所操廿餘曲，及自著数曲，省题析義，去雜除繁，體會吟猱，注意指法，一歸音韻和平，諧聲令節，儲筍篋，已有年所，本不敢災諸梨棗，茲因衆友均欲備存，勉以應之」。

洪鈞序引雲閒的話說：「習之甘餘年，受業琴師者四，出而聆江左諸家之論日『某浙派，某蜀派，或虞山派，金陵派』。更有論者日『大家派，隱逸派，術士派，閨閣派』。静言思之，殆難定評，……如書家論字，……筆法在帖，筆性在人。琴之浙蜀諸派，筆法也；隱逸等派，筆性也。余所習三十餘曲，據依古調，間有增減。但主性情，不標宗旨，期其神遊象外，意在指先而已」。

在交遊方面，他總是一往情深。

朱敏文序文云：「雲閒上人以琴名一世，自余家居時已相往來，後上人卓錫虎邱，余亦筮仕於浙，際闊者近十年，上人則遍參江浙諸名山，窮岩篴谷，棲真者久之，佛法仙心都歸腕下，所造益進。光緒丁亥（公元一八八七年）訪余於武林，……時浦城祝安伯太守、震澤王夢大令、長白文濟川柏研香兩協戎、杏襄侯遊戎，皆善琴，聞上人名，願一見。余謂上人曰：「師與我湖上移情可乎？』上人曰：『喏。」爱與諸君子，徜徉於六橋三竺間。每撫絃動操，朝煙夕月，别有神韻。自是月必一晤，晤則琴歌竟日，神契益深。歲戊子余奉檄人都，上人惜往，操南音於北風。居數月，賞音寂然，自非上人秉志沖淡，幾乎作安道碎琴想矣！先是祝安伯太守酷嗜上人雅音，擬結琴社于金牛湖上，事未及行，而庚寅（公元一八九 0年）冬余以憂去浙，安伯、濟川、襄侯又相繼謝世，不勝墜雨秋蒂之感。」

當時海内名琴僧有蜀僧竹襌、皖僧開霽、普陀朗珠，與雲閱都有師友淵源。

蜀僧竹禪題贈「以琴說法」四字，序文說：「上人深悟琴學三味，其住世行道，得教外别傳之旨。更於琴中音律指法，究竟精妙。曾在普陀聽同袍朗珠闍黎彈《梅花三弄》曲上人所授。」

開霽的序文則說：「及離塵學佛，遇朗珠闍黎於海上，一彈再鼓，成世外交」，「知公操縵三十年，合琴與禪爲一致」。

這些序文都列舉雲間的造詣、他與同道的友誼、他的佛學的修養，都言之有物，與一般題跋已顯然不同，具見文風之變。此譜在琴論、指法方面都叙述得極其簡要，對於傳統琴曲也只是如他所說「去雜除繁」，「諧聲令節」，甚至在京師不見重於「北風」，而名琴家祝安伯獨嗜其「雅音」。至於大膽作曲刊行，卻是稀見的特點。

本編據中國藝術研究院藏清光緒十九年（一八九三）刊本影印。
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Return to the Zhangchunwu Qinpu intro, to the annotated handbook list or to the Guqin ToC.